Asian American Writers’ Workshop (Link)

Asian culture and community events in the Dallas area (Link)

Graphic Novels (Link)

Miss Asian America Pageant comes to SF (Link)

Monthly Sulu Series to end in NYC (Link)

New People Announces J-Pop Summit Expansion (Link)

Rebel ‘With’ a Cause: Catching Up with Margaret Cho (Link)

RECOMMENDED LINKS

www.america.gov

Do you want your information or suggest any news, events, opportunities that would be beneficial to Asian American awareness?

Email me contact information, website, and a few lines detailing your news at communications@ecaasu.org.

Sincerely,

Advocacy Factsheet — Women’s Issues

sian-American women have become the most at risk ethnic group to experience suicide and domestic violence. CNN reports “model minority” expectations and family pressures for success as factors in leading Asian-American women to high rates of depression, starting as young as the fifth grade (read the article below). According to studies, family pressure often affects girls more than boys because cultural expectations limit the freedom of Asian women to go out with friends and do the kinds of things most teenagers growing up want to do. The American view on body image and success puts Asian American women at low self-esteem and a high pressure to achieve. Furthermore, one-sided communication from parents to children and fathers to wives create roadblocks for healing. Many Asian American families hold negative views towards counseling and therapy that hinder APIA women from seeking help.

Disparities affecting young women affect future mothers and ultimately future families. The progress of women necessitates contributions from both genders. Too often, men underestimate the importance of their involvement in empowering women, such as in efforts for lowering domestic violence. Educating both genders about the issues that women face will contribute towards breaking the downward trend in gender relations and strengthening a climb towards family relations.

ECAASU hopes to reach out towards more young high school and collegiate APIA women to dispel issues in self-esteem and family pressures, and to bridge role models for inspiration and empowerment. APIA college students of both genders will also become more aware of how to stop depression, verbal and physical violence from affecting our community.

ECAASU hopes to create long-term progress among APIA college students—the future of Asian American families. We strive to break destructive trends towards domestic violence and body image, to give APIAs the resources to be better future adults for leading successful and fulfilling lives.

Read the CNN Article Here: “Push to Achieve”

Issues & Areas of Focus

Some AAPI women’s issues that ECAASU National hopes to tackle this year include, but are not limited to:

A. Outreach to Young Women—empower confidence, leadership, and community.

B. Confronting Domestic Violence—raising awareness of changes that both men and women can take

C. Addressing Health Concerns and Social Pressures—openly discussing mental health, parental conflicts, sex, and body image.

D. Push for Ratification of Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Legislations—such as CEDAW: Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. 186 countries have ratified the treaty, leaving seven: Sudan, Somalia, Iran, the United States, Nauru, Palau, and Tonga.

E. Collaborate with National Organizations— such as, but not limited to NAPAWF, APIAHF Institute on Domestic Violence, Sakhi, Aspire, and DVRP to bring expert speakers, create engaging workshops, and empower collegiate students to take greater action.

Additional Resources

National Asian Pacific Women’s Forum  (NAPAWF)—Research Issue Briefs and Factsheets on Reproductive Justice and Leadership Development

Aspire—APIA Women Leadership through: AA Women in Leadership Conference, Youth Leadership Program, and Outstanding Woman of the Year Award.

Asian/Pacific-Islander Domestic Violence Resource Project (DVRP)—Common Myths on Domestic Violence

APIA Institute on Domestic Violence—Research Factsheets and Statistics on Gender and Sexual Violence

CEDAW—Facts about CEDAW and global violence against women and girls

National Asian Women’s Health Organization—Resources for Mental & Reproductive Health and more.

Interesting Feminist Bloggers

News feeds that will keep you up with the latest Asian American media, and links to many more blogs

3 Disgrasian

3 Degenerasian

3 Reappropriate

3 Nikkei View

Want to Get Involved?

If are you interested in getting involved with AAPI women’s issues, please contact ECAASU National’s Advocacy Chair on Women’s Issues Dara Chen at womens.advocacy@ecaasu.org.

Lorenzo Paglinawan, Communications Chair (Virginia ‘12)

ASIAN AMERICAN STUDY

1. I am hoping that my research can later lead to the implementation of specific interventions aimed to increase protective factors and decrease risk factors of sexual coercion which could hopefully lead to reduced rates of sexual coercion within the Asian American population and worldwide hansenk@fit.edu (Survey)

2. In order to participate, you must be Asian or Asian American and be at least 18 years old. If you would like to participate in my study, please click on the link below and you will be directed to my online survey:(Survey)

It takes about 15-20 minutes to complete the survey.  You will receive $10 in VISA gift card

INTERNSHIP

The Asian American Writers’ Workshop (Link)

Minority Business Development Agency
U.S. Department of Commerce Internship

Our agency is currently recruiting interns for the fall of 2010.  Attached please find a listing of our available internships for that time frame.  There are currently (5) offices with internships available and the backgrounds vary depending upon the office.

The process for selection requires that all interested students forward their cover letters, resumes, and writing samples to me at lpurnell@mbda.gov.  I will then forward their applications to the office that they are interested in working for.  If a conditional offer is made, I will contact the student and email them a listing of documents to be completed by either themselves or the school.  Upon receipt of the documents and successful background check, MBDA will extend a firm offer.  Firm offers will NOT be made until completion of a successful background check. We are beginning the recruitment process now to allow enough time for completion of background checks prior to the arrival the student.

Student Eligibility: The prospective student must

1. Be enrolled at least half-time in an accredited institution and recommended by a school official.
2. Be at least 16 years old.
3. Be a United States citizen.
4. Meet the Department’s policy on employment of relatives.
5. Pass a background check & meet security or fitness requirements. (includes fingerprinting)

If there are any questions, please feel free to contact me at (202) 482-3102

OCA National Internship Facebook Fundraiser (Link)

OCA National Center Communications/Membership Intern

Description:
OCA National Center is seeking current undergraduate students interested in a paid internship for Fall 2010 (August-December). The selected intern will work directly with the Member Engagement and Public Policy Program Associate on communications and membership programming.
POSITION AVAILABLE IMMEDIATELY. Last day to apply is August 13th.

To apply, submit a cover letter, resume, two references, 500 word writing sample, and graphic design sample if available to Lan Nguyen at lnguyen@ocanational.org or OCA National Center 1322 18th Street NW Washington, DC 20036.

Smithsonian Folklife Festival (Link)

NAAAP National Convention August 12 – 15 (Link)

EDUCATION

Advocates Work To Develop Asian Pacific American-serving Higher Education Sector (Link)

Spreading the Word on Asian American Diversity (Link)

The Model Minority Myth applied to Asian-American Health (Link)

National Asian American, Pacific Islander Advocates and Education Leaders Convene to Address Higher Education Needs of Students (Link)

US High Schools with highest Asian American enrollment (Link)

POLITICS

Kagan: Will she bring diversity to the bench? (Link)

County’s HIV/AIDS efforts criticized (Link)

California Congressman Michael Honda Calls for More Asian American-Themed Stamps (Link)

Asian American Civil Rights Groups Announce Co-Branding (Link)

More Asian Americans Recruited in U.S. Army (Link)

Glenn Beck Attacks the Bad Old Unions: The Chinese Must Go! (Link)

First Chinese American Woman Appointed as Chief of Criminal Division in DA’s Office (Link)

Washington deputy mayor a Filipina (Link)

White House Initiative on Asian American and Pacific Islanders to Hold News Conference (Link)

Obama pushes to diversify federal courts, but it’s a slow process (Link)

International Acts featuring Hannah Zarate Youtube (Link)

vincent WHO? (Link)

Shyamalan film puts white actors in Asian and Inuit roles (Link)

DramaFever Bringing Hit Filipino Teleseryes to American Viewers (Link)

Jeremy Lin works out with NBA teams (Link)

Steven Low’s one-man show tackles Asian American romance (Link)

Unexpected Harmony (Link)

Do you want your information or suggest any news, events, opportunities that would be beneficial to Asian American awareness?

Email me contact information, website, and a few lines detailing your news at communications@ecaasu.org.

Sincerely,

Lorenzo Paglinawan, Communications Chair (Virginia ‘12)

Dear Members,

In honor of Mother’ Day, please join me and thousands of other advocates in urging our senators to support the ratification of the landmark international agreement that affirms fundamental human rights and equality for women and girls. (Link)

Dara Chen, ECAASU Advocacy Chair for APA Women’s Issues

and ECAASU DOES
…
.

A few weeks ago Calvin Sun, one of ECAASU’s Board of Directors, gave two keynote speeches at the University of Virginia.

To SEE MORE of Calvin, (CLICK) to see transcript and photos from his inspiring presentations.

He also competed in impromptu break dancing and bhangra competitions.

ASIAN AMERICAN STUDY

I am hoping that my research can later lead to the implementation of specific interventions aimed to increase protective factors and decrease risk factors of sexual coercion. Hopefully, this leads to reduced rates of sexual coercion within the Asian American population and worldwide hansenk@fit.edu (Survey)

AWARD

Award named after English professor and Students should apply (Link)

SUMMER INTERNSHIP

Finance/ Administration Internship (Link)

Important Opportunities for Asian Secular University Students (contact)

The CSIS Freeman Chair has an opening for a full or part-time paid internship this summer. (Contact) (Link)

The Leadership Conference Education Fund Internships (Link)

2010 Advancing Justice Conference, June 23 – 25 in Alexandria, Va. (Link)

A VILLAGE CALLED VERSAILLES with director S. Leo Chiang, OCA Screening (RSVP)

Asian American Awareness Week celebrates Asian cultures (Link)

The Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund: 2010 Annual Summer Cocktail Party (Contact)

Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) Career Fair on Friday, July 9th at the John’s Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies 1:00pm – 5:00pm

Asian American Literary Symposium Report (Link)

APIAVote EVENTS (Link)

Asian American Awareness Week celebrates Asian cultures (Link)

Asian American Literary Symposium Report (Link)

California API Policy Summit 2010 (Link)

Campus Progress’s National Convention (Link)

Decolonial Poetics, Kundiman West Salon, Third Area & Writing the Desert – Call for Participants! (Link)

Filipino Young Professionals – DC Spring Networking (Contact)

Jean Kwok: Girl in Translation @The Asian American Writers’ Workshop (Link)

Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival (Link)

May Day 2010 – National Mobilizations for Immigrant Workers Rights: (Link)

Mayor’s APIA Heritage Month Celebration May 18th, 2010 at 7 pm, D.C. (contact)

OAPIA “Community Day 2010” Saturday, May 15th, 2010 from 11:00 a.m., D.C. (contact)

SAALT’s Chicago Reception: May 25, 2010 (Link)

The 2010 OCA National Convention in Houston, Texas from June 17-20 (Link)

EDUCATION

Newsom Convenes Black and Asian Leaders to Discuss Tensions (Link)

Pain for Asian youth didn’t end with school assault (Link)

Recent attacks prompt calls to relieve tensions (Link)

UC’s New Policy on Freshman Admission — Moving in the Wrong Direction (Link)

POLITICS

Asian-American groups weigh in on state redistricting process (Link)

Census Bureau News — Facts for Features Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month: May 2010 (Link)

Lieu on the Asian-American vote, his independence (Link)

Obama Administration Seeks Increased Asian American and Pacific Islander Access to Federal Programs (Link)

OCA Criticizes Arizona’s Anti-Immigrant Law (Link) (Contact)

Senate confirms Asian-American for appeals court (Link)

South Asian Americans Leading Together (SAALT) condemns SB 1070 in Arizona. (Link) (Contact)

Wanted: More Latina, Asian & Black Women Politicians (Link)

Washington deputy mayor a Filipina (Link)

White House Initiative on Asian American and Pacific Islanders to Hold News Conference (Link)

5 May 2010, Tim Be Told released a brand new music video for their song, “Analyze,” off the critically acclaimed “From the Inside” EP.  Watch the INSPIRING video now at (Link), (Youtube)

For those of you that want to see Tim Be Told perform at your university next year, the band has a limited number of shows that it will be playing at college campuses.  Therefore, send a booking email request ASAP to (Booking)

Angry Asian Man (Link)

Changing Reality: The Voices of Asian American TV Stars (Link)

Tenured Radical (Link)

Top Ten Greatest Asian American Rappers of All Time (Link)

Silk Screen Asian American Film Festival hits 5th year (Link)

Stanford Asian American Cultural Center (Link)

Do you want your information featured in the newsletter?
Interested in suggesting any news, events, opportunities that would be beneficial to Asian American awareness?
Email me contact information, website, and a few lines detailing your news at communications@ecaasu.org.

Unsubscribe You will regret it!

Often referred to as the “country of immigrants”, the United States supports and accepts the greatest number of immigrants as permanent residents than any other country in the world. In 1998, Bill Clinton argued that “the United States has always been energized by its immigrant populations” and that “[immigrants] have proved to be the most restless, the most adventurous, the most innovative, the most industrious people.”

While immigrants are undoubtedly invaluable to the growth of the United States, the economic, political, and social aspects of immigrants remain a highly debated topic. Often changes in settlement patterns, job availability, voting trends and crime rates caused by continued immigration concerns many non-immigrants and have instigated waves of anti-immigrant sentiment in America’s recent history. While immigration issues affect all immigrant communities, the Asian and Pacific Islander community is disproportionally impacted, as almost 70% of all Asian Americans are foreign-born.

Fierce anti-immigration sentiment has lead to the passing of discriminatory laws in America’s both recent and distant history against Asian Americans: this includes everything from the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Act, to the Alien Land Laws in western states, to the internment of Japanese Americans during World War II. More recently in 2001, the September 11th attacks lead to the detainment and deportation of immigrants as a result of the hastily-passed Patriot Act. Most recently, Arizona state legislature passed the perhaps the most stringent undocumented immigrant laws, Senate Bill 1070—which disfranchises already underprivileged communities. Their legal troubles aside, immigrant communities lack many additional resources and opportunities, including access to healthcare, public benefits, adequate housing, education, and civil rights.

ECAASU hopes to educate, mobilize and empower college students to work with and support immigrant communities in the current immigration movement. We hope to advocate alongside other organizations at the city, state, and national level to protect and advance the rights of AAPI immigrants.

Issues & Areas of Focus
Some issues regarding immigration that ECAASU National hopes to tackle this year include, but are not limited to:
A. Immigration Reform Legislation—Collaborate with national organizations, including but not limited to, the United We Dream coalition and the Asian American Justice Center to push for comprehensive immigration reform.
B. Immigration Rights: Healthcare—Work with the Asian Pacific Islander American Health Forum to improve immigrant’s access to healthcare (Tentative)
C. Immigration Research: Gender Roles—Partner with ECAASU National Advocacy Chair on Women’s Issues Dara Chen and the National Asian Pacific American Women’s Forum to investigate how gender plays a role in immigration.

Additional Resources
Immigration Worldwide: Policies, Practices, and Trends—An exploration of current immigration patterns and policies, written by experts

Asian-Nation: Early Immigration into the US—A history of Asian American immigration

SB1070 Senate Fact Sheet—Information about Arizona’s new, controversial immigration law, SB 1070.

Heath Care Reform and Immigration—NYTimes: Health Care and Immigration

Arizona Bans Ethnic Studies Classes—Arizona bans ethnic studies in state schools and teachers with accents are no longer allowed to teach English.

Americans Demand Immigration Reform—NYTimes: A recent poll reveals that the majority of Americans believe the country’s immigration policies need to be changed.

Citizenship for Qing Wu—After receiving a pardon from NY Governor, David Paterson, Qing Hong Wu naturalized to become an American citizen.

Illegal Immigrants Bolstering Social Security—NYTimes: Despite popular belief, illegal immigrants contribute to American society.

Asian American Organizations Against SB 1070—Several Asian American civil rights and legal organizations unite to file a lawsuit against the US District Court for the District of Arizona, challenging SB1070.

Immigrants Indifferent to Economic Downtown—NYTimes: Despite the staggering economy, immigration rates remain unchanged.

Want to Get Involved?
If are you interested in getting involved with Immigration advocacy, please contact ECAASU National’s Advocacy Chair on Immigration Melanie Gao at immigration.advocacy@ecaasu.org.

Transcript of Calvin D. Sun’s (ECAASU Board of Directors) Opening Keynote Address at PURSUIT’s inaugural conference

University of Virginia

Saturday, April 17th

11:30 A.M. EST

Performing immediately before the opening keynote

Calvin Sun's Opening Keynote

Well that was embarrassing. I don’t know why I signed up to do that but I hope that all got your attention. I don’t know how breakdancing will save the world, but it did save my social life back in college.

Hello University of Virginia! I would first like to thank the organizers of PURSUIT for making the mistake of inviting me to speak here today. I don’t know what they were thinking, but I jumped at the chance for a free trip to Virginia. Not to mention all the free food for a whole weekend. Thanks guys. You have me sold on global justice. So you got 1 down, 300 more to go.

The reason why I mention the idea of my being here as a mistake is because I don’t think I’ve hit it there yet. I’m still young. I’m your age. And I’m not here to give you all the answers like what you might seek from other keynote speakers. But maybe that’s why this conference is so amazingly unique; you’re going hear it not from a person 1-3 generations ahead of you, not someone who really has only a vague understanding of the way we think and live, but rather you’re going hear it from a peer – me — someone who’s going through exactly the same thing you’re going through. Again, don’t look to me as someone with all the answers, but rather as someone who’s involved in the fight with you and giving another perspective on things. So if I could address you all here today as a fellow colleague instead of an old fart of a parent-figure, I think this could be a beginning of a beautiful friendship.

That being said, I’m so happy to be here and truly honored to be the opening and first ever keynote speaker for PURSUIT in its inaugural year. I feel like such a badass. And I’ve been invited here today to address a number of topics that pertain to our mission as future leaders of this world. This crazy crazy world we’ve inherited. It’s a monumental task, and I must remind you that I’m only 23 years old. That’s not very much older than at least a quarter of the people in this room. So don’t take my words as gold; I’m still learning as much as you are…hopefully this will be more sharing than it would be lecturing.

If I can summarize my experiences of my growth as a student leader, it would be this: 7 years ago I took up a passion in addressing a personal issue, and then translated my experiences into learning how to become a global citizen and social activist on others issues in the greater community. In other words, I learned how to help myself first before learning how to help others. But how I did I get there? I think the best thing for me to answer that is to tell you how it happened from day one. Why? Because one, you might be able to take away something from it. And two, it’s a great rush to talk about yourself in front of 300 people.

I grew up with a childhood that might be familiar to some of you. Son of an immigrant family in an American city, struggling with the dual identity of being both Asian and American, I lived the reality of looking and being different from everyone else. The food I ate was too foreign, my speech was too accented, my eyes were too small, my nose was too snubbed, and my teeth were all braced up. It was as if when I was born, God went “oh, my bad.” And so I endured the stereotypical schoolyard bullying, taunted and kicked around like a slop bucket day after day. It sucked.

In being different, I dealt with the reality of immediately being perceived as “uncool” or socially awkward. That my innate shyness (yes, I was shy once!) – that my innate shyness exasperated the overwhelming social expectations, where I would always be picked last for kickball, dodgeball, basketball, soccer, the middle school dance. I was living the nightmare of being the asexually shy Asian American male, and I didn’t know how to get myself out of it. All I really wanted was not to be afraid anymore, to achieve the impossible dream of becoming those darling role models showcased in the media, but who looked exactly nothing like me; to simply having the confidence that I completely lacked simply stemming from the way I looked and the way I was raised.

During high school, I made one of my first attempts in finding refuge in what seemed like would be a familiar community: the Asian club. But to my immediate disappointment, I saw that the only thing they did was have dinners and touch each other. As someone who was looking for a way out, I only got free food and sympathetic nods of the head. There was no role models to look up to, no mentors who cared. The name of the group was the “Asian Appreciation Club.” I mean what the hell are you supposed to do in an “appreciation” club? “Look, there’s Asian people here, let’s appreciate them!” Think how awful it was to be both marginalized and have a shitty name for a club. Finally, their club tendency was to move in the familiar method of self-exclusion; to become safe from the taunts, we’d create our own safe haven, our utopia, our social clique…that wasn’t what I was looking for. I sought harmony and understanding, not division and separation. (That sounded cheesy, but I meant every word).

Then back in the early winter of 2002, my older brother from the Bay Area sent me a trailer for Justin Lin’s “Better Luck Tomorrow.” With my crappy 56k modem, I waited 2 hours for a 5 minute trailer to load. And then I saw the images. Young Asian American faces, speaking fluent English and being tough. They were flirting, they were kissing, and they were in high school. I didn’t know what the movie was about and frankly I didn’t care. Here was a film with major Hollywood support that was showing off young Asian American talent in non-stereotypical roles.

Within a week, I went on crazed autopilot. I started hijacking the Asian Appreciation meetings and hyped the film. I called up friends at other high schools and told them to organize their local Asian American clubs. And if they could, they should talk to their friends and their friends of friends, didn’t matter what color they were. I learned that simple genuine enthusiasm will get people to listen, as long as you’re not drunk. Once they’re convinced, they’ll start doing work for you. In 2 months, I had a list of 300 high school and college students and a handful of New York City theaters wanting to do business with us.

I decided to pick the largest venue in NYC – the AMC Empire in Times Square — who in turn offered us their biggest theater…but on the condition that we could sell out all 600 seats. If I failed, I would be banned from ever coming back. So did I tell the manager that I was a junior in high school and I had never done this before? You bet your ass I didn’t. I was precocious as I was stupid. I said “yeah no problem!” So I took the risk and tried to figure out how I could fill the last 300 seats in only 30 days.

I realized that if you’re intensely passionate about something, someone out there will also be just as crazy as you are to make it happen. You just have to find those people. And you know what? Sometimes being crazy can get you somewhere. Some people will call you stupid, but being stupid means you can take those risks most people are too afraid to consider. And at the same time, those people also won’t learn as much as you will.

So in being stupid, I posted our screening all over film forums, Asian American forums, indie forums, even porno forums, you name it. And one of my posts caught the eye of the co-producer of Better Luck Tomorrow: Julie Asato. She told me she was interested in sending out the cast and the director to our screening as long as I could pull off a good showing. If I failed, I would have been banned from being Asian American. Did I tell her I was a junior in high school and I had never done this before? I don’t think I didn’t…She probably would’ve laughed at me and called me stupid.

So I took that development as an added bonus to our publicity: come to our screening and you get to rub shoulders with upcoming Asian American Hollywood stars. And on Saturday April 12^th, 2003, I can safely say 600 Asian Americans and their friends attended a sold out screening in Times Square. I was just a high school junior, running around and taking it all in. The director, Justin Lin, who now directs the Fast & the Furious movies, came out, along with Sung Kang, Parry Shen, and Julie Asato herself.

And it was partly because of our screening and other similar efforts on the East Coast that Better Luck Tomorrow made the highest average ticket sales per screen than any other big-budgeted Hollywood film that weekend, including the Adam Sandler/Jack Nicholson hit “Anger Management” which opened on that same weekend. (and just to compare: Anger Management made $11,889 per screen while Better Luck Tomorrow made $27,751 per screen). That’s where being stupid gets you. And for a 16 year old high school junior, that night taught me 3 things. First, I didn’t do it because I consciously wanted to represent Asian American pride; before this I had no experience with Asian American issues. I did it because I just felt I had to. There was no other choice for me. I saw a non-stereotypical Asian American ensemble in a Hollywood film and I felt that was enough to become part of a groundbreaking movement. And it was after this screening when I knew for fact I identified myself as an Asian American and I was proud of it. The second thing I learned is that it doesn’t matter how old you are to get things done. Passion knows no age limits. And the third? For the first time I grew a pair of balls. I was no longer the shy, stereotypical Asian guy with no identity to call his own…I had giant cajones, and it felt GREAT.

Even though most of my concerns before then had stemmed from petty superficial desires that any insecure adolescent would be guilty of, it nonetheless represents the overwhelming social issues that all of us – even adults – struggle with when addressing arbitrarily constructed and superficial standards that encumber…. those who look “different” trying to be “accepted.” Those issues have always been universal, whether it’s being accepted as the “cool” kid when you’re young or being accepted as a “real American” when you’re an adult. Now, our two choices have always been either to take the passive approach, to assimilate and lose your identity, or to take the activist role in changing the status quo of what it means to be “accepted”; that even if you look “different” you can be accepted.” For me on that fateful April night, I became an activist.

And I want you to know that each of us in this very room is capable of activism no matter how young we are. By the very nature of being here, as part of a passionate community hungry for change, the chance for us to succeed multiplies. The next Martin Luther King Jr., Gandhi, Mother Teresa or Barack Obama could be you, you, or you. All it matters is discovering that passion and seizing the opportunities. And I think that by all of us being here today, a little bit of that passion is coming out.

So with Better Luck Tomorrow I took something personal and turned it into a cause others could join in on. That’s all it took for me to get involved. Then I realized how useful it was to promote what I learned in even greater community affairs; there’s so much more you can do for communities beyond your own immediate ones.

For example, as soon as I became a freshman at Columbia, I immediately noticed how ethnic-interest organizations seemed like this amorphous monster that ran on its own, segregated from the larger community. Do you guys have the same problem here?

Yeah, so I also realized that by being self-exclusive, we lose potential allies. That’s where my involvement with student government came in.

I never did student government in high school, and I didn’t have an interest going into it as a freshman in college. I also never had an interest being a resumé padder or being the ultimate tool on campus. But I couldn’t say no to a friend. Someone I trusted. He was a good friend of mine, sensitive to what I wanted to do as an activist, and he told me he wanted me on his ticket. I couldn’t say no. I couldn’t say no to such a unique opportunity and I couldn’t judge something without first trying it out. And I admit, when we did get elected, it ultimately did seem like a pretty cool thing to do (but then again, I can also be a big tool myself).

From day one, I was pretty much the only student of color on my class council. I felt a little whitewashed; my nickname might as well have been “Token” like the character on South Park. But I could’ve dealt with that. Then I recalled how disappointed I was with the status quo back in high school and how Better Luck Tomorrow was the opportunity for me to do something about it. I saw student council as that new opportunity. Even though I understand that some of us here may have negative attitudes towards student government, being on it gained me constant, daily access to the University administration and allowed me to send class e-mails to the entire student body. Do you know how much good work you can accomplish with that? I don’t have to get you started on being able to talk to the Dean of Academic Affairs on expanding ethnic studies or putting every Asian American Alliance or Black Students Organization event in the class e-mail. That was pretty sweet.

In my capacity on the council I also fought hard to convince other students of color to step outside of their comfort zones and run for class president or vice president. Harboring activist interests shouldn’t automatically discourage us from thinking we don’t belong in “that” group. I was happy to see that by the time I was a senior, half of our elected student government were minorities. I don’t want to say that I was solely responsible for such a dramatic change, but I think for some people, the very nature of seeing other activists and students of color working in student government, was enough of an encouragement for them to run. Sometimes all you need is one spark, one firestarter, to create a chain reaction.

But being on student government also got me into trouble. With increased interest in sociopolitical issues came a backlash in some peoples’ trust of me. After all, I was just one person and despite my efforts, being on student council still made me part of the “establishment” in the eyes of many people. How could student activists trust me if I represented a University administration that historically were so neglectful of issues like ethnic studies? I don’t have a clear-cut solution to this problem because there really isn’t any. They were right; the reason activism exists is because it highlights something unjust with the status quo that needs to be fixed. I was representing that status quo by being on student government. But at the same time, nothing can be fixed unless we have allies within the establishment listening to us. That is where you guys come in. I want to stress the danger of being too “activisty” to the point where you become blind to the opportunities that present themselves when they take the form of allies that will be surprisingly — part of the establishment. If you start drawing the lines in the sand, it becomes “us vs. Them.” People can’t work together like that. Although sometimes that method is necessary if there’s no other recourse, most times it’s overly aggressive, overly combative. So if you refuse to listen to people because of their titles or the organizations that they represent, you yourself will contradict everything that you’re fighting for. Nobody will want to hear you out; nobody will want to work with you. So you can yell loud and proud, but don’t forget to listen. Sometimes the unlikeliest of allies might be the opposition and sometimes it takes working with the opposition to change it from within. And that’s also important…if you want to change the status quo, most times it takes a change from the inside. The Civil Rights Act wouldn’t have passed if Dr. Martin Luther King didn’t closely communicate and work with the “man within the system” President Lyndon B. Johnson. Homosexuality would have still been diagnosed as a mental illness if it weren’t for the president of the American Psychological Association, a closeted gay psychologist who communicated and worked with the gay community in changing the status quo behind the scenes. There were also many other factors the propelled those changes, but those are notable examples of ‘change within the system.’ I quote the Dalai Lama when I say this: “Learn the rules so you know how to break them properly.” That is why communication with your friends AND foes — strong level-headed and open-minded communication that involves both talking AND listening – has been the answer to 99.9% of the problems in the world. That might not be a real statistic, but we know it’s right. So, whomever your “enemy” may be, sometimes the best and easiest way to get them on your side is with fair understanding and civil communication.

Another important thing to realize in why we need to communicate is that we as conscious global citizens will always find ourselves on the right side of history. And most importantly, we’re all on the same side. That includes students of all races and creeds, students of all religions, yes even potential allies on student government. You can find a kernel of hope in each of these communities if you try, no matter how foreign they are to your own. All you have to do is to appeal to their ability to listen, so they can empathize with our struggles as student activists. Befriend them, party with them, buy them a beer, gain their trust, and then not only will they be willing to work with you, but they will want to work with you. And if all else fails, join their community and see what you can do from the inside.

For example, when I was a junior at Columbia I was the incoming Asian American Alliance Vice President and I had to address the issue of the “Asian American” identity being consisted only of East and Southeast Asians. The South Asian community largely ignored our events and we never could not find a way to include them without making it seem too forced. So what did I do? I went into crazy mode. I became a dancer of the Columbia Bollywood team and learned Bhangra from the Columbia Bhangra team. In other words, I took a personal passion of mine – dance – and used it in a way to communicate with other communities. That passion created genuineness in my approach. And the result was not only amazing new friends, dance partners, and learning new dance styles, but a South Asian interest in what we did on AAA when I became President the next year. And it went from 1 South Asian represented on the AAA board increasing to as many as 6 the next year. All I had to do was to learn a few dances and make a few friends. And again, like what I did with Better Luck Tomorrow, I took a personal passion of mine and applied it in a broader context.

So run for student council, join a dance team of a culture than is not your own, enlist in a cultural group not of your own color….we have the responsibility to take a proactive role in trying something out of the box when something isn’t working, because frankly, we got nothing to lose. The ultimate goal is to recognize that we are all members of a global community, that we are citizens united together in our common humanity and that we must take the active steps in addressing that shared identity. That is activism.

I also want to address how a misconception of activism is associating it with constant negativity. You can protest something all you want, that’s great, but without making an equal effort in positively supporting the people who are doing a good job, you’re gonna end up looking like an army of angry rabid aardvarks. People don’t like working with an army of angry psycho aardvarks. We’d rather work with glue-sniffing anteaters than mad flesh-eating aardvarks. That’s because people are naturally drawn to positive energy. Enthusiasm is infectious. So what I’m trying to say is that positive activism is still activism. Just like how I wanted to highlight with Better Luck Tomorrow, we want to show the establishment that we’re willing to support them if they’re making the right choices. Because one day, there is the very likely possibility that many of us will grow up to become part of the establishment, and that’s okay. We’ll be calling all the shots, and we’ll be hoping we won’t make the same mistakes that our predecessors have. Just because you become part of the establishment, doesn’t make you any less of the activist. An activist works towards its goals, not its representative positions.

And those of you out there but don’t feel the “activist vibes” stirring within you, I’m gonna warn you all about what it means to be complacent. I got this from one of my conversations with one of your workshop facilitators today and my best friend over there, Christian Piña. I learned that everyone dies alone. So what ultimately matters in life is the conversations you will have on your deathbed. And the only conversations you’re going to have on your deathbed is going to be with just you, yourself, and if you believe in him – God, or whatever nature/energy that it is you believe in. And God – or you – is gonna ask: “Did you make the most out of this gift I’ve given you?” And if you, on your deathbed cannot answer a resounding “yes” with 100% conviction, that’s it. That’s your life. You were given an opportunity to be all you can be, or even something larger than yourself, but then you’ve squandered it. And you will never have another chance to make up for that. That’s why I truly dread the knowledge that a majority of the people in the world today endeavor only to make money, raise a family, and die. They live to serve only themselves. And they die never knowing the immense potential they’ve wasted in themselves.

One of my closest friends, Nilam Patel, when she heard about what I was gonna say today, she wanted me to give you this quote by Steven Prefontaine: “To give anything less than your best, is to sacrifice the gift.”

But long before that deathbed experience, I want you to all see how we, all of us, how extremely privileged we are on this planet. We’re still young, we’re intelligent, we’re well-fed, we’re healthy, we’re all good looking and we’re educated in one of the richest and most well-established educational systems in the world. So if we’re born smart and capable enough to be social activists, what’s the obvious path for us? Inheriting undeniable opportunities, we also inherit undeniable personal responsibilities. So, in this moment of truth, we make a choice: we can take these gifts and use them to serve only ourselves for the rest of our lives, or we can take these gifts and give back to the people who weren’t as fortunate as we are: Communities in poverty, starving children, those infected with common diseases, those without a decent education all around the world – those are the people who need these hands – our hands. And some of us in this room have already dedicated ourselves to the crucial responsibility we owe to the world. This to me – is global justice and social activism at its very core.

And if you ever doubt yourself, find what frustrates you as something that can motivate you. It frustrates me to see homeless people and take that as acceptable. It frustrates me to see laws passed that kick people out of this country even though they’ve worked hard here for 10-20 years. It frustrates me to see a great portion of our minority communities have an easier time getting into jail than into college. It frustrates me that even though we’re the richest country in the world, we let these injustices happen. Those frustrations motivate me. These frustrations can be that fuel in creating great leaders.

Some of you may already be great leaders at whatever you do, but also don’t forget you’re a leader because you’re serving a community, a constituency, a group of people, and never yourself. Being aware of this, Mr. Peter Drucker wrote: “Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.” That quote is so sexy I wish I could take credit for it.

We all must do well, but we also must do good. And there is a lot of good out there that needs to be done. That is why we’re here. To do good and to learn how.

So to the ladies and gentlemen of PURSUIT: Recognize why you are here. Recognize that you are needed. Recognize that you are capable. You all have what it takes to do great great things. Our world is sorely in desperation for leaders like you. We can’t look anywhere else for help because the spotlights are on us. And we’re going to tell the world that we’re here and we’re not going anywhere.

To sum it up, especially for those of you new to activism and want to get involved: First, find your personal passion – something that moves you deeply, then find a way to address that passion, and then finally find the vehicle to translate your newfound skills so others can benefit from your passion. For me, that was Better Luck Tomorrow and how it changed the negative perceptions of myself and my own community…and the skills I gained from BLT in turn rendered me capable me of addressing the issues in the Columbia community, and eventually, even more acquired knowledge would allow me to eventually handle issues for the global community. Step by step, I could now see how the sum of my experiences, both successes and mistakes, allowed me to take on even greater challenges and responsibilities.

Second, know that success has no age limits. You’re all more than ready to make big things happen…all you need is confidence in yourselves and never losing sight of your goals.

Third, don’t be afraid to be stupid. Without being stupid, you stop taking risks, and without taking risks you neither make mistakes which you can learn from nor do you have the potential to achieve anything profound. Think about it: every single passionate person in the world has always been called crazy or stupid at least once in their lifetimes. Those are the people, those who in live their passions, whom also end up being regarded as amazing and fearless individuals. They are the true activists.

Fourth, there is no such thing as mistakes, just lessons. I define success not by how many achievements we rack up but rather how well we can bounce back from our inevitable moments of failure.

And fifth, think outside the box when working with communities outside your comfort zone. For me, I used my passion for dance when I reached out to the South Asian, Latino and Black communities at Columbia. What’s your passion? You have one. Just find it. Because the more allies we communicate with, the more friends we have on our side, and the better looking our team.

If we are able to stand united upon those goals, then we already commit ourselves to the inherent responsibilities that make humankind worth fighting for.

Thank you PURSUIT so much for your time and thank you for having me!

Calvin's closing keynote

Certainly not the most conventional way to conclude a keynote: a bhangra dance-off.

Delivered by ECAASU Board of Director, Calvin D. Sun, at 11:30AM, Saturday, April 17th at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia.

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Finance Chair – Kayleigh Huang (Villanova ‘12)

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Communications – Lorenzo Paglinawan (Virginia ‘12)

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Marketing Chair – Catherine Hsu (UPenn ‘11)

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Advocacy Chair (Immigration) – Melanie Gao (Columbia ‘14)

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Advocacy Chair (South Asian Discrimination Issues) – Henna Tailor (Rutgers ‘13)

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Advocacy Chair (APA Women’s Issues) – Dara Chen (Florida ‘13)

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High School Chair – Sonya Prasad (Wheatley ‘11)

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West Coast Outreach Rep – Eugene Mok (Villanova ‘10)

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South Outreach Rep – Nina Lu (Texas ‘09)

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Midatlantic Rep – Christy Truong (Old Dominion ‘11)

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Congratulations to the new National Board!

And with that, we also give you our Board of Directors ‘10-’11; please welcome Michelle to the Directorate!

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS

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Calvin Sun (Columbia ‘08)

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Allen Pan (Yale ‘08)

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Nancy Liang (Yale ‘08)

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Andrew Lee (Cornell ‘08)

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Anjlee Joshi (Rutgers ‘09)

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Michelle Horikawa (George Washington ‘09)

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Thus we present to you the most capable, most accomplished, most attractive, and most diverse board in ECAASU History!

From left to right:

Southern Outreach Representative Nina Lu shares her love affair.

Marketing Chair Catherine Hsu runs like a puppy.

Midatlantic Outreach Representative Christy Truong just can’t keep it in.

co-Vice Chair Caspar Wang goes through his comic-book style emotional rollercoaster.

co-Advocacy Chair (South Asian Discrimination) Henna Tailor communicates her joy through facebook.

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And some excerpts from the acceptance emails….

co-Advocacy Chair (Immigration) Melanie Gao screams:

OMG THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!

West Coast Outreach Representative Eugene Mok gets snarky:

I would like to thank all my fans and family supporting me through the years…haha.

Communications Chair Lorenzo Paglinawan is speechless:

I am in shock…

Finance Chair Kayleigh Huang makes an unusual request:

Can we know who else is on board soon? And also whether or not I get a support group?

co-Vice Chair Derek Mong keeps it simple:

GO NATIONAL!

High School Chair Sonya Prasad offers to do a school assignment about us:

AHHH! THANK YOU SO MUCH! . . . I feel like I should write an essay on how I’m definitely going to take advantage of this opportunity and how hard I plan to work for ECAASU, which of course I am, but right now the only thing on my mind is how happy I am to be a part of the National Board.

Marketing Chair Catherine Hsu also wrote us a haiku:

ECAASU (I’m totally cheating right now by making ECAASU the title.)

Thank you for juicing
me up again, but I am
only more thirsty.

co-Advocacy Chair (APA Women’s Issues) Dara Chen reenacted a scene for us:

Getting out of my last class of my freshman year, I was on my way to turn in paperwork for the Hospital I volunteer at. In a rush, I checked my phone and noticed that there was a text informing me someone had been informed of their ECAASU National decision. I braced myself. This could be it. I could be cut.

Going to my inbox, I briefly skimmed and ….Look! ECAASU National wrote to me …uuh no. This could be Really Really Bad.
I took a pause to make sure I was ready… WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!
A few pedestrians across the street look at me curiously.
I mean that says what I think it says, Right?! (re-reads a few times and crosses a busy intersection with uncontainable excitement.)

Congratulations to everyone! We’re all so happy you’re happy!